Earned It
by mellie4president
Summary: You know our love would be tragic (oh yeah) So you don't pay it, don't pay it no mind (Mellivia/Olitz fic)
1. Last Call

It's 11:30 at night and Olivia has somehow ended up at a bar in a sleazy part of town. Ok, maybe it's not sleazy but it's definitely not Olivia's scene. She needed to escape all of her problems so she hoped in her car and drove around until she stumbled into a bar 30 minutes from home called Last Call. She's downing her second shot when the bartender comes over to give her another drink.

"You might want to slow down."

The bartender's words make Olivia look up from her glass. No one has talked to her all night besides the two men who failed at their attempts to buy her a drink. The bartender is wearing a burgundy tank top, black denim skinny leg jeans, and her long, dark brown hair in a messy bun. Olivia noticed the brunette earlier, but it isn't until now that she notices how blue the brunette's eyes are.

"You have really pretty eyes." Olivia kind of just blurts it out. She knows that she's tipsy. Her body is completely warm despite the cold air that enters the bar every time someone opens the door.

The bartender reveals an amused smirk before replying with a quick 'thank you'. "So what's your story?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why are you drinking tonight? You don't look like an alcoholic, so something is obviously weighing you down. What is it?"

Olivia downs another shot before responding. "I'm getting married." She holds out her left hand to let the bartender examine the ring. It's a simple engagement ring with one diamond on the band. When Fitz first proposed, Olivia thought it was perfect. She never liked fancy jewelry.

"You don't seem excited about it." The bartender takes Olivia's shot glass away and puts a glass of water in front of her.

"I am. I just…" She lets out a long sigh before finishing. "Getting married means that everything is going to change. There are things in my life that I've always wanted to do and have never done."

"Like what?"

There's a brief pause and before Olivia can fully register what she's doing, she's leaning over the bar and pulling the bartender into a kiss. The kiss lasts about two seconds before Olivia pulls away. Before Olivia can even think about apologizing, the brunette is pulling her back for another kiss. This one is harder and it takes Olivia a second to actually kiss her back. The kiss turns into a full make out secession and Mellie can taste the tequila on Olivia's tongue. The two don't break apart until the sound of a man whistling brings Olivia back to reality.

"What time do you get off?"

The bartender, whose name Olivia soon learns is Mellie, doesn't get off until 2 o'clock in the morning. Olivia mentions that she's never had sex in a car or with a woman and Mellie is more than happy to cross that off of Olivia's list.

It's 2:25 and Olivia's laying down in the back seat of her car (Mellie owns a motorcycle) with Mellie's head in between her legs.

"Fuck" is pretty much all Olivia can manage to moan out over and over again and once she plummets over the edge she returns the favor.

Olivia doesn't make it home until almost 4 o'clock. When she finally checks her phone for the first time in hours, she sees that she has five missed calls from her fiancé.

"What happened to you last night? I called you like five times?" Fitz asks while climbing the stairs to his apartment and carrying a box.

"Sorry, I was out with Abby and ended up crashing at her place. Did you need something important?"

"No. I was just checking in on you. You've been kind of M.I.A. the last couple of days."

"I've been packing." Olivia says while opening the door to Fitz's place. Correction: Their place. After months of convincing, Olivia is finally moving into Fitz's apartment. It's not that the apartment isn't nice; it just wasn't hers. That's one of the reasons why she went drinking last night. Things were already changing. She's been dating Fitz since high school and things have always been the same. They both stuck with the careers that they said that they wanted since college, they spent most nights at Olivia's watching TV, and they always ordered food in because neither one of them cooked. Olivia loves Fitz and the only thing she loves more than him is consistency.

She officially sold her apartment yesterday morning and it took everything in her not to cry while handing the keys over. Her fitting for her wedding dress is two days from now and that thought alone terrifies Olivia.

"I know and I'm happy that you're finally moving in. I know how hard this is for you." Fitz plops the box down on the floor before grabbing Olivia's waist.

"You better hope that those weren't my wine glasses."

"I'll buy you all the wine glasses you could possibly drink out of." Fitz says while picking Olivia up and wrapping her legs around his waist.

Olivia lets out a low chuckle before kissing him on the lips. "You can't afford it."

He carries her out of the front door before noticing that there's someone in the hallway exiting their apartment.

"I didn't know you were back in town." Fitz says while placing Olivia on her feet. "I want you to meet someone. This is my fiancé, Olivia."

Olivia finds it amazing how Fitz's neighbor manages not to miss a beat despite the situation.

"It's very nice to meet you, Olivia. I'm Mellie."


	2. You Fascinate Me

They didn't stay in the hallway for very long. Mellie mentions something about having errands to run before work and leaves. It was all kind of a blur for Olivia. The fact that her fiancé's neighbor was the woman she slept with last night kind of threw her off. Olivia and Fitz manage to finish bringing all of her boxes into their apartment before one o'clock despite Olivia's collection of designer wardrobe. Very inch of the apartment is currently covered in boxes. One of which has Liv's impressive collection of wine in it.

"I don't see them, Fitz." Olivia says a little aggravated while ripping open boxes.

"They're here somewhere, Liv. A box full of wine didn't just walk out of here." Fitz says while putting Olivia's new dishes in the kitchen cabinets. "So, what'd you think of Mellie?"

Olivia really needed that wine.

"Uh, I don't know. She was kind of in a rush. She seemed nice."

"I think you two would get along well. You're a lot alike actually."

"Really? I'm a lot like a bartender?"

"Yes. Wait, how'd you know she was a bartender?"

 _Shit._ "She mentioned it. Before leaving for work. Remember?"

Fitz just shrugs it off before continuing to unpack the boxes labeled 'kitchen'.

"So, how long have you known her?"

"Mellie? Um, six months. Maybe more. I helped her move in. She travels a lot, so she's hardly ever home."

"You helped her move in? How did I not know about this?"

"I don't know. You don't tell me everything you do you know? Besides, you don't have anything to worry about with Mellie. I'm not her type."

"I'm not worried about that, Fitz." Olivia lets out a sigh while running her fingers through her hair. "I just really need a glass of wine." She opens a couple of more boxes and then she finally finds the one filled with wine. She makes her way over to the kitchen and grabs the bottle opener and a glass. "Do you want any?"

"No thanks." Fitz responds while taking a step back and looking at the cabinet full of glasses. "There's no way all of your wine glasses are fitting in here."

"Yes there is. All you have to do is get rid of some of your coffee mugs."

"Why do I have to get rid of my mugs?"

"Because we don't even drink coffee, Fitz."

" _ **You**_ don't drink coffee. I do. You don't even need this many wine glasses. They all look the same."

"They do not." Liv responds while finally pouring herself a glass. "If you make room for my wine glasses, I'll let you keep the TV in the bed room."

"Deal." Fitz removes the majority of his glasses to make room for Olivia's. "So, are you ready for your fitting tomorrow?"

"Yes, though I'm kind of having second thoughts about the dress. I don't know if it's the right one."

"You'd look beautiful in anything, Liv. You could walk down the aisle in sweatpants and no one would even care."

Olivia softly chuckles before taking a sip of her wine. "My mother would kill me."

The rest of the day consists of Olivia and Fitz unpacking more boxes. They end up eating dinner in bed because it's the only surface in the apartment that isn't covered in Olivia's things. As usual, Fitz falls asleep first. Olivia drinks two more classes of wine before getting out of bed and walking over to confront the source of her insomnia.

When she knocks on the door, she only has to wait about two seconds before Mellie lets her in and offers her a beer. Olivia declines it and Mellie opens it for herself before taking a long drink of it.

"Rough night?"

"Yes. Two idiots decided to get into a fight at the bar and I had to stay and fill out the paper work."

"They make bartenders fill out paperwork?"

"They do when the bartender owns the place."

Olivia's never had a good poker face so she fails at hiding her initial shock.

"You didn't think that I could afford this place on a bartenders salary did you?"

Olivia looks around the apartment for the first time. It has the same layout as Fitz's though it lacks pictures and other personal items.

"I suppose not."

"I own Last Call and a couple other bars on the east coast. That's why I'm hardly ever here in D.C." Mellie puts her beer bottle on the island in the kitchen before walking over to the other side to Olivia. "I'm glad you came over. I could use the stress release." Mellie pulls on the tie of Olivia's silk robe to reveal a matching nightgown. She takes a step closer to Liv and raises a suggestive eyebrow.

Olivia takes a step back while tying her robe. "That's not what I came over for."

"No? Well you didn't come over for a drink or more great sex, so you must want to talk about something."

"Great sex?"

"Well, I was great. You were good. You have plenty to learn. I'd be happy to teach you." Mellie ends her statement with a smirk.

Olivia rolls her eyes with mock annoyance. "I came to talk about Fitz. I need to know that you're not going to tell him about what happened last night."

"Why would I tell him about that? I have no intention of ruining your life, Olivia. I like having you next door."

"Why?"

"You fascinate me. With most women that I'm with, I'm not interested in anything but sex with them. If I can help it, I don't even want to know their names. But you're different."

"How?"

"I want to know everything there is to know about you, Olivia."

Mellie's confession stuns her. It makes her head spin and heart swell at the same time. "You can't say things like that."

"Like what?"

"You know."

And Mellie does know. She can't say everything that pops into her head. It's inappropriate. Mellie's only known Olivia for a little over 24 hours and she thinks she likes her. No. She knows and that kind of scares her but not as much as it excites her.

"I can't make any promises but I'll try to bite my tongue next time."

There's an awkward pause before Mellie speaks again. "Do you want to sit down? I can turn the TV on, though I'm sure there's nothing on at this hour."

"I can't stay. I should get some sleep. I have to be up in a few hours."

"Oh…ok."

Olivia can actually hear the disappointment in the brunette's voice. "Maybe some other time?"

"Yeah. Some other time."

Olivia walks over to Mellie's front door and leaves after throwing a quick 'goodnight' over her shoulder.

In the morning, Mellie finds herself downtown with an hour to kill. She walks by a fancy wedding boutique and when she looks through the window her heart literally skips a beat. Inside the shop is the woman she can't get out of her head. She's in a beautiful gown that fits her every curve and before Mellie knows what's happening, she's walking inside the shop.

"She's gorgeous, isn't she?"

The question comes from a woman in a black suit with a clipboard in one hand and a glass of champagne in the other. Mellie can only assume that the woman works in the building.

"What?"

"The woman in the strapless, lace gown. I saw you looking at her through the window. Are you the fiancé?"

"No."

"What a shame."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because you're in love with her."

Before Mellie can fully register what the other woman just said, she hears her name being called.

"Mellie?" The voice belongs to Olivia. Her feet have a mind of their own again because she's walking over to Olivia despite her instinct to run out of the boutique.

"What are you doing here?"

"My, um, my bike's in the shop. So, I'm…I was…I'm just killing time." She can't recall a time she's ever had this hard of a time talking to a woman. "You look beautiful by the way."

"Really?"

"Yes." Mellie looks around and notices the other women in the store trying on dresses with their friends and family by their sides. "Are you here alone? I thought this was something that you did with friends."

"They came with me last month to pick out the dress. This is just a fitting."

"Oh, ok." Mellie looks Olivia over again and she blushes when Olivia catches her. She clears her throat before speaking again. "Are you almost done here? I was going to grab something to eat. You're welcome to come along. I'd like the company."

"Yeah. Let me just change." Olivia disappears into the dressing room and the woman Mellie was talking to earlier makes her way back over. She places a hand on her shoulder before whispering in her ear.

"You're totally screwed."


	3. You're Olivia Pope?

Mellie ends up taking Olivia to a small Italian place a couple of blocks from the wedding boutique. Olivia is telling her a story about how Fitz and her met in high school. They were both running for junior class president and even after Olivia had won, Fitz asked her out on a date. She thought it was intriguing that his ego wasn't bruised from being beat by a woman, so she said yes. Olivia has this megawatt smile on her face while telling the story and Mellie can't help but notice how her eyes light up. Mellie is brought out of her thoughts when Olivia throws a sugar packet at her face.

"You're staring. What were you thinking about?" Olivia says while sitting back in her seat.

"You…" Mellie can see Olivia visibly tense up when the words leave her mouth. "And Fitz. Your eyes light up when you talk about him. You obviously love him very much. It's endearing. The thought of being in love."

"You've never been in love?"

"Once. When I was in my twenties."

"That's all I get?"

Mellie pauses before going into detail about the failed relationship. She hadn't thought much about it in the pass eight years.

"During my sophomore year of college, I met this woman who I thought was perfect. I mean I honestly thought that she could do no wrong. So, after graduation she got a job offer here in D.C. and because I thought that I couldn't live without her, I followed her here. We were in a good place for about a year but she ended up meeting a guy who offered her things that I couldn't, so she left me." Mellie takes a sip of her drink before continuing. "She's actually doing pretty well for herself. She works in politics."

"Really? What's her name? Maybe I know her. Politics is my expertise."

"I can't give you her name, Liv." Mellie responds while throwing the sugar packet back at Olivia. "I didn't know that you worked in politics, though it's not surprising now that I think about it. What do you do?"

"I run a crisis management firm. Pope & Associates."

Mellie actually chokes on her drink at Olivia's confession. "You're Olivia Pope?"

"Yes. Did you actually just put two and two together?"

"Well in my defense, you told me your name was Alex the first time we met."

"Well in my defense, I thought I'd never see you again."

"Fair enough." There's a comfortable silence before either one of them speaks again. "I have a question for you."

"Mhmm."

"Am I really the only woman you've ever been with?"

Olivia looks around to see if any one around them can actually hear their conversation. They're sitting in the back of the restaurant and the only people around them are an old couple two table away.

Olivia clears her throat before responding. "Yes."

"Hmm. How'd you go through college without experimenting?"

"I was with Fitz."

Mellie wants to say 'you still are but yet you slept with me anyway' but she ops against it.

"Besides, not everyone experiments in college."

Mellie makes a face of disbelief before taking a bite of her food. "I did."

"Is that when you realized that you're a lesbian?"

"I could be bi."

Olivia returns Mellie's previous facial expression of disbelief. "Yeah right."

Mellie smirks at Olivia's response. "To answer your question, no, that is not when I realized that I'm gay. I figured that out in elementary school. My experimentation in college was when I got really drunk and kissed this guy at a frat party. When I woke up the next day and remembered, I threw up."

"You knew you were gay in elementary school?"

"Mhmm. When I was in third grade there was this girl in my class who I was infatuated with. One day this boy pushed her off the swing set, so I punched him in the face. Of course the school called my mom and had a meeting. When my teacher told my mom what happened, my mom looked over at me and said, 'Mellie, that was very gay'."

This causes Olivia to let out a loud snort.

Mellie can't help but laugh at the memory as well. "Of course I didn't know what that meant but when she explained it to me everything started making sense. The next day I went back to school and kissed that girl."

"What happened?"

"She kissed me back."

Before Olivia can respond, she's interrupted by the sound of her phone ringing. "Sorry. It's work." She excuses herself from the table and takes the call. "Hi, Abby."

" _Liv, where are you?"_

"I'm at lunch with a friend."

" _A friend? You have four friends Liv and all of them are here at the office working. Who are you with?"_

"Is this a personal call or a work call, Abby?"

" _Work. Your 3 o'clock appointment is on his way and you're out at lunch. Do you want me to cancel?"_

With everything that has been coming on, Olivia had totally forgot about all of the work she had to do at OP&A. "No, don't cancel. I'm on my way." Liv hangs the phone up and makes her way over back to Mellie. "I'm sorry. I have to leave. I have a client coming in and I totally forgot about it."

"Oh, well I understand. My bike should be ready anyway." Mellie notices Olivia reach into her purse for her wallet and she stops her. "I'll pay for lunch."

"No. I can't let you do that."

"Yes you can. You're already running late and this will just slow you down. Go. I'll pay for it."

Olivia pauses to protest but realizes that Mellie is right. "Fine, but I owe you."

"Deal." Mellie watches Olivia hurriedly throw her designer coat on and matching gloves. "Drive safely."

She lets out a quick 'thank you' and then she's out the door.

Olivia makes it back to her apartment around 8:30 to find Fitz in the shower. She takes off her coat and clothes while kicking her heels off. Her meeting with her client took longer than expected. It would have gone along a lot faster if her client hadn't kept lying to her through his teeth. Liv makes her way into the bathroom and pulls back the shower curtain.

"Hi."

Fitz is rinsing shampoo out of his hair when he looks up. "Hi. You're home later than I expected."

"I know. New client. You know how that goes." Olivia unbuttons and removes her blouse. "Mind if I join you?"

Fitz shakes his head. He adjusts the showerhead so that Liv's hair won't get wet and then steps back to make room for her. Olivia finishes undressing and joins him.

"How was work?"

"Fine." He responds with a sigh. "We head back into court tomorrow. The case is really in the jury's hands at this point. There's not much more I can do."

"Everything will be fine. If you presented your case efficiently then the jury should have no doubts when they make their decision tomorrow."

"Thank you. You always know exactly what to say." He places a soft kiss on Olivia's shoulder before wrapping his arms around her. "How was your day? Besides the annoying client."

"It was pretty good actually. I ran into Mellie downtown."

"Really?"

"Yeah. We had lunch. You were right. We are a lot alike."

"I knew you'd like her. You should invite her to the wedding."

"She probably has better things to do, Fitz."

"Well you won't know until you ask."

"Fine. I'll ask her."

"Good. Now, enough about her. I want to take you to bed."

"Fitz, we're soaking wet."

"I don't care." He throws Olivia over his shoulder and steps out of the shower to head into the bedroom.

"At least turn the water off!"


	4. You Like Her

When Mellie walked into work today for her 8pm shift, she didn't expect to see her neighbor sitting on the last stool at the end of the bar nursing a scotch. That was two hours and four drinks ago.

"Are you ready to tell me why you're here?" Mellie asks Fitz while fixing a drink for a customer two seats down. The customer was a beautiful Latina who Mellie normally would be seducing right now if she wasn't worried about Fitz.

"I told you why I'm here. I'm here to drink." He's obviously drunk. His worlds are running together and his head is resting on the edge of the bar.

"You could have gone to any other bar. Which you probably should have done, because now I'm going to have to call Liv to come and get you."

His head shoots up from the bar a little too fast and he rests a hand on the shoulder of the guy sitting next to him to keep his balance. "Please don't tell Liv that I'm here. I told her that I was still at the office."

He looked out of place sitting at the bar. Much like Liv did the night she was here. She wondered if either of them owned a single pair of jeans.

"Then tell me why you're here."

He takes a deep breath while running his fingers through his hair that was messy but still some how managed to look perfect. "I lost my case."

"And?"

"What do you mean? That's it."

"I could have told you that you were going to lose that case. There wasn't enough evidence and people don't send rich white men to jail. The justice system is rigid, my friend."

"You sound like Olivia."

"Good. She's a smart woman." Mellie reaches for Fitz's glass and downs its remaining's.

"She is." He says with a smile on his face. "It's my favorite thing about her. She's as smart as she is beautiful."

"She is." To Mellie's surprise, she actually says that out loud. And she would be worried about the slip up if she weren't positive that Fitz wouldn't remember this conversation tomorrow.

This causes Fitz to sit up straight and raise an eyebrow. "You like her."

Mellie fixes Fitz another scotch and places the glass in front of him. "I don't."

"You do." He takes a sip of his drink before speaking again. "And I don't blame you. She's easy to fall in love with."

That's the second time that someone's insisted that she's in love with Olivia and it probably wouldn't bother her so much if the assumption weren't true. If she hears one more person say it she'll probably snap. "I'm not in love with your fiancé, Fitz."

"What made you fall for her? Or maybe when did you call for her would be a better question."

"We're not having this conversation."

"Why not?"

"Because I'm not in love with her." At this point Mellie was just trying to convince herself.

"You're probably right." He responds with a lazy shrug. "I'm pretty drunk, which means I should probably get going." He hopes down from the stool and puts his coat on.

"There's no way I'm letting you drive."

"Why not? If I die, you could have Liv all to yourself."

Mellie visibly clenches here jaw out of annoyance, which only causes Fitz to laugh.

"Relax, Mellie. When's the last time you got laid?" He didn't expect her to answer his question but she did after a short pause.

"Three nights ago." Olivia was the last person that Mellie had been with and if she was being honest, three nights was a dry spell for her.

"Was she any good?"

 _Yes._ "I'm not answering that either."

Fitz smirks at the brunette's response before putting some cash on the bar. "Anyway, I'm not driving. I texted a friend to pick me up. I'm just going to the restroom. I downed like six drinks."

Mellie points him in the direction of the restroom and watches as he stumbles towards it.

Fitz's ride turns out to be a no show, so Mellie ends up driving him home. Her attempt at getting him on the back of her motorcycle failed miserably, so she took his car instead. Mellie drags Fitz up the flight of stairs with his arm draped around her shoulder and thankfully it doesn't take Olivia long to open the door after she knocks. She opens the door in a nightgown. It matches the one from the other night except this one is dark red. Mellie thinks it should be illegal for anything to be that short.

"Hi. Um, I didn't mean to wake you."

"You didn't. I was working actually. Is he ok?" She asks gesturing to a barely conscious Fitz hang on to Mellie.

"He's fine. Just drunk. And heavy." She adds while struggling to hold him up.

Olivia moves aside to let Mellie in and closes the door behind him. "You can put him on the couch."

Mellie drops Fitz face down on the couch and rolls her shoulders from the weight gone. This is the first time she's ever been in Fitz's apartment. Fitz's _and_ Olivia's apartment now. When she looks around she can easily point out what things came from Liv's old apartment. There's almost two of everything. Two toasters sitting on the kitchen counter. Two bookshelves shoved side by side in the corner of the living room and two coffee tables in front of the TV.

"Nice place." Mellie says with a smirk on her lips.

Olivia playfully rolls her eyes before responding. "I know it looks awful but I refuse to get rid of any of my things and so dose Fitz."

Mellie looks over at Fitz before making her way over to Olivia. "What were you working on before I interrupted you?"

"Research for a new client. A very difficult client. He keeps lying to me."

"Why don't you just quit then?"

"It's a favor for a friend. I can't but believe me I would if I could. It's turning out to be more work than I thought it would be."

"I should let you get back to work then."

"Wait, I have something for you." As soon as the words leave Liv's mouth she's disappeared into another room.

The apartment is completely quite except for the soft snores coming from Fitz on the couch. Olivia returns with a few seconds later with a small envelope in her hand.

Mellie opens it to find Fitz's and Olivia's save the date. It was a month from now.

"Fitz thought it would be a good idea to invite you. He wants you there."

"What about you?" Mellie asks finally looking up from the invitation in her hand. "Do you want me there?"

There's a brief pause. "I do."

"Can I bring a date?" Mellie thinks about the Latina from the bar who wrote her number on a napkin for her. She wonders if she'll have plans that day.

There's another pause but this one is longer. To be honest, Olivia didn't want Mellie to bring a date. She didn't want to have to watch her parade some woman around. But Olivia wasn't in a position to tell Mellie what she could or couldn't do.

"I didn't know that you were dating anyone."

"It's nothing serious. I wouldn't just bring any kind of person to your wedding though. You'd like her. She's classy. Like you."

Olivia smiles at Mellie's reply before speaking. "I look forward to meeting her then."

Olivia opens the door to her apartment to let Mellie out and is surprised to see a blonde knocking on the brunette's door.

"Harmony?" Mellie asks while walking over to her door. "What are you doing here?"

"Well hello to you too." Harmony says with a thick Georgia accent and a hand on her hip. She looks pass Mellie to see Olivia standing behind her in only her nightgown. "Is this your girlfriend?" she asks while raising a perfectly arched eyebrow. "You know you never call me anymore, Melody."

"Ugh, don't call me that." She moves to unlock her front door while avoiding her sisters question. She pushes Harmony inside before she can say anything else. She looks over to Olivia who now has her arms crossed over her chest from the cold air. "I'll talk to you tomorrow?"

"Yeah. Of course. Goodnight Mellie."

"Goodnight, Liv." She watches Olivia walk into her apartment before she does the same.

"Goodnight, Liv." Harmony says in a mocking tone once Mellie is fully inside. "Someone's in love."

 _Fuck._


	5. Sara

When Olivia enters her apartment in the morning, she finds Fitz still asleep on the couch. She puts the breakfast she got from their favorite place on the kitchen counter before making her way over to him. She kneels down next to him and gently runs her fingers through his hair.

"Wake up."

He lets out a low groan before opening his eyes.

"You're hung over." Her voice is low and calm.

"I'm sorry. Don't be mad."

"I'm not mad. I knew you weren't staying late at the office. I figured you'd go out for drinks. I just thought you'd crash at Jake's."

Fitz takes this time to look around. He realizes that he's at his own apartment and not at his best friend's. "How'd I get here?"

"Mellie brought you home. You should thank her."

"I will." He responds while rolling on to his side and then running a hand over his face.

"We have a lot of errands to run today so you should go shower. You can eat after. I got us all of our favorites."

"Marry me?" He jokingly asks before leaning over to kiss his fiancé.

"Maybe after you shower."

Mellie wakes to the smell of bacon cooking. Something that she hasn't had the pleasure of doing in many years. She slowly drags herself out of bed and into the kitchen. She didn't get much sleep last night due to the fact that Harmony spent most of Mellie's time lying about why she actually flew to D.C. to see her.

"Good morning, Melody." Her sister says while standing over the stove with a big smile on her face.

Harmony was always a morning person. When they were younger and forced to spend summers together, Harmony would run into Mellie's room and open all the blinds because she hated being up so early by herself. "You're fixing breakfast?" She asks sleepily while leaning on the counter next to her sister.

"Yes. It's the least I can do for you letting me crash here."

Mellie moves over to the coffee pot to the right of her sister and pours herself a cup. She pours large amount of creamer into the mug and she isn't shy with the sugar either. She looks up to find her sister making a face of disgust. "So what's his name?" She stirs the mug of coffee well before sticking the spoon in her mouth and tossing it in the sink.

"Who?"

"The guy you just broke up with. You do this every six months, Harmony. You date a guy and then he ends up cheating on you and then you storm off and fly to D.C. So, what's his name this time?"

There's a long pause before her sister responds. "Henry. I really thought it'd be different this time."

"You always do." She takes a sip out of her mug while watching her sister make their plates. Harmony takes their plates to the kitchen table and Mellie follows her.

"So, are you dating the woman across the hall or are you just screwing her?" The question doesn't surprise Mellie. She knew it was coming. "I have to give you your credit where it's due, sis. You always knew how to pick them. She is gorgeous. Liv, right?"

"You always were straightforward." She takes a bite out of a piece of bacon before responding to her sister's question. "We're just friends."

"You don't have female friends, Mellie. You like her."

"I do. I like her a lot actually, but she's getting married. She gave me an invitation to her wedding last night."

There's a pause and Harmony gives Mellie a look that feels more like sympathy than pity. "And you're going?"

"Yes. I'm going with some girl I met at my bar last night. Well, I haven't asked her yet but I'm hoping she'll say yes."

"What's her name?"

"Sara."

"Latina?"

Mellie makes a face as if she's wondering how her sister guessed correctly. Harmony takes a sip of her orange juice and a bite of her eggs before answering Mellie's gaze.

"You have a type. I don't know what pissed daddy off more. You dating women or you not dating white women."

Harmony's statement causes Mellie to burst into laughter and her sister joins her shortly. "The dislike is probably mutual. He never did like me. That's why he left."

"He didn't stick around long with me and momma either, Mellie. It wasn't just you."

She shrugs at the thought. She never actually thought about her dad. She only did that when Harmony would show up. She looked more like him than Mellie did.

"Do you work today?"

"No. I'm off."

"Good. Let's go out tonight. I need to get over Henry and you were always my best wingman."

In between running errands, Olivia and Fitz end up having lunch with Jake.

"I'm sorry about last night, man. I ran into a beautiful blonde and you know how that goes." Jake says after taking a sip of his beer.

"It's ok. Mellie drove me home."

"Mellie?" He asks with a raised eyebrow.

"My neighbor. The one I helped move in."

"Oh, the hot brunette. I remember her. You never gave me her number."

"You're not her type." Fitz says with a smirk on his face. Him and Jake have been friends since they were eight years old. They grew up right across the street from each other and were nearly inseparable. They did almost everything together. They were both players in high school. That was until Fitz met Liv. Fitz got into a serious relationship and Jake continued his player ways.

"I'm everyone's type." Jake leans back in his seat before winking at Liv.

She rolls her eyes before shifting awkwardly in her seat. "She has a girlfriend."

"She does?" Fitz and Jake both ask in unison.

"Yes. She's bringing her to the wedding." Olivia would be lying if she said that the thought of Mellie bringing someone to the wedding hadn't kept her up last night. She knew Mellie wasn't the relationship type, so she wondered what kind of woman Mellie thought was important enough to bring to a wedding.

"Speaking of wedding dates. Have you decided who you're bringing yet?" Fitz asks facing his best friend.

"I'm going by myself. Put me at the singles table. That's where I do my best work."

Fitz lets out a long sigh. Though he's not surprised by his friend's answer, he was hoping that he'd actually bring a date. "Fine. Mellie and her date can have your seats then. That's ok, right Liv?"

"It's perfect." Olivia answers before taking a big gulp of her wine.

Mellie and Harmony end up at a club a couple of blocks from her apartment. Harmony's wearing a form fitting red dress that stops mid-thigh with a pair of matching fuck me pumps. Mellie decided to go with a loose white V-neck, tight leather pants, and a pair of all black boots.

"Would it have killed you to wear a dress?"

"Yes." Mellie responds while grabbing her sister's hand and pushing pass a crowd of people to get to the bar.

"Where's your date?"

"She'll be here soon, which means that I need to get rid of you for the night. Do you see any cute guys you want to talk to?" Mellie asks while leaning against the bar.

Her sister looks around the bar and points to a good-looking guy in a burgundy polo shirt and jeans. "Him."

Mellie follows her sister's line of site to see the guy she's pointing at. "He's married. Pick someone else."

She lets out a huff before scanning the room again. "Okay, what about him?"

This time she points to a guy who doesn't have a wedding ring on his finger and looks like a decent guy. Like someone who won't take advantage of her little sister. "Alright, I'll be back. Order me a vodka tonic."

Harmony watched her sister walk over to the guy before ordering their drinks. It didn't take long for Mellie to get rid of her sister and make her way back to the bar. It wasn't until about half an hour that her date finally arrived.

"I'm sorry that I kept you waiting. Surgery took longer than I expected." Sara put her purse down on top of the bar and removed her coat before sitting down at the bar. She's even prettier that Mellie remembered. She has long raven hair and dark brown eyes. Two qualities that Mellie greatly admired.

"You're a doctor?"

"Yes. Cardio." She flags the bartender down and then orders two of what Mellie's having. "I'm surprised you called me. You couldn't even give me the time of day last night."

"Sorry about that. My friend had my hands tied, but I am all yours tonight."

It wasn't until after midnight that Mellie and Sara found themselves outside at the front door of Mellie's apartment. Mellie had Sara pushed against the front door while they made out like two horny teenagers. Mellie's hands gripped at the Latina's waist as she tried desperately to pull her closer. The sound of someone clear their throat makes the two women jump part.

Mellie turns around to see Olivia and Fitz standing outside of their apartment.

"Sorry to interrupt." Fitz says with a light blush on his face. "Olivia mentioned that you were bringing a date to the wedding. Is this her?"

Mellie hadn't actually gotten around to asking Sara to the wedding. She figured she had time. "Oh, I-"

Sara moves from behind Mellie and extends here hand to Fitz. "Yes, I'm Sara."

"Fitz." He shakes the woman's hand before turning to Liv. "This is my fiancé, Olivia."

Mellie watches Olivia extend her hand. She has an expression on her face that Mellie can't read.

"It's nice to meet you, Olivia. Mellie has told me a lot about the both of you." Sara says while releasing Olivia's hand.

"Good things I hope." Fitz says with a smile on his face. He puts his arm around Olivia's shoulder and pulls her into him to keep her warm.

"Of course." Sara takes this as an opportunity to grab Mellie's hand and intertwine their fingers.

"Well, we'll let you two get back to your date. I just wanted to say thanks for driving me home last night."

"No problem." They say their goodnights and Mellie leads Sara into her apartment before locking the door behind them. "I'm sorry about that. You don't have to go to the wedding with me."

"Nonsense. I love weddings." Sara removes her heels before speaking again. "So, which one of them did you sleep with?"

Mellie thinks about playing dumb but she ops against it. "The cute one."

"They were both cute."

"The cuter one." Mellie says with a smirk.

"Hmm…" She makes her way over to Mellie who's now leaning against the door. She lefts the woman's white V-neck over her head before tossing it aside. "I'll have to make you forget about her then." She grabs Mellie's wrists and pins them above her head. "And I think I've got my work cut out for me."


	6. She's Pretty

It's been a week since Mellie's date with Sara. She and Sara are in a good place but she'd be lying if she said that she hadn't thought of Olivia at least once every time they were together.

Mellie is currently dropping her sister off at the airport. Harmony decided to stay with Mellie for a week, which is longer than she usually stays on her visits. The blonde usually only stays for three days and those days usually consist of the two sisters avoiding each other.

"You sure you don't want me to stay longer?" Harmony asks while standing in line to board the plane.

"I'm sure. If you're here then I won't be able to miss you."

"Mhmm." There's a smirk on Harmony's face. Mellie's used this line before.

"I promise I'll call you more often."

"Really?"

"Yes. I had fun. Maybe I'll come visit you next time."

There's a huge smile on Harmony's face before she leans in and hugs her big sister. "I'd like that." Harmony finally reaches the front of the line and the two sisters say their final goodbyes before the blonde boards the plane.

While exiting the airport Mellie sees Olivia from the corner of her eye. She's angrily talking on the phone while pacing back in forth. It isn't until Mellie is right in from of her, that Olivia notices the other woman's presence. She talks on the phone for a few more seconds before hanging up and shoving the phone in her oversized Birkin bag.

"Take a deep breath." Mellie says while placing her hands on Olivia's shoulders to keep her from moving.

Olivia does as she's instructed and Mellie doesn't let go of Olivia until she's sure that she's calmed down. "I've never seen you upset before."

"Sorry." Olivia responds before taking another deep breath. "That was my mother. She just landed. Her flight got delayed and she's flying with my father. Whom she hates by the way and she's blaming everything on me because everything is always my fault."

"Are they here for wedding stuff?"

"No. They're not supposed to be here until the rehearsal dinner but they like to show up randomly to make my life hellish. They usually don't come together though."

"You look like you could use a drink."

"I could use several actually which is probably the only thing that will get me through this entire visit." Olivia finally calms down enough to look Mellie over. Her hair is up in a messy bun and she's wearing a tight gray sweater with a dark pair on skinny jeans. Her boots give her an even higher advantage over Liv than usual. "What brings you to the airport? Are you picking up Sara?"

Olivia says 'Sara' with a hit of jealously and that puts a small smirk on Mellie's face. She and Olivia haven't seen much of each other since the night of Mellie and Sara's first date. Sara worked long days, which was perfect for Mellie's closing shifts at the bar. Mellie would usually drive over to Sara's place after work with a bag of food from any place that was open at 2 in the morning.

"I dropped Harmony off. She's heading back to Georgia."

"Oh."

"You never told me what you thought of Sara. I want you to like her if I'm going to bring her to your wedding."

Before Olivia can get a word out of her mouth, a woman approaching them interrupts her.

"That was without a doubt the worse flight I've ever been on."

Mellie can visibly see Olivia tense up before plastering on a fake smile and turning around to greet the other woman.

"Mother." Olivia greets her mother with a hug before she notices the absence of her father. "Where's dad?"

"He's getting the bags. It's the least he can do since he accidently booked his seat next to me." Olivia's mom looks past Liv to see Mellie standing there. "Are you going to introduce me to your friend, Olivia?"

"Sorry." Olivia responds while turning towards Mellie. "Mom this is Mellie. Mellie this is my mother."

"It's very nice to meet you, Mrs. Pope."

"Please call me Maya. I ditched that last name with the divorce."

"Well it's very nice to meet you, Maya." Mellie says while extending her hand to the other woman.

"Charming." There's a smirk on Maya's face that Mellie takes as approval. "I'm starving, Olivia. We should get dinner."

"Of course."

"And you should join us Mellie. It's not everyday that I get to meet one of Olivia's friends."

"I wouldn't want to intrude."

"You won't. You can even bring a date if you'd like." Maya watches Mellie think it over before speaking again. "I won't take no for an answer."

"Then I guess my answer is yes."

As soon as the words leave Mellie's mouth, a man who she presumes to be Olivia's father walks up to them.

"What are we saying yes to?" Asks Olivia's dad while hugging his daughter.

"Dinner." Olivia says while moving to position herself in between her parents.

"We just got off of an awful flight. I really don't want to get dressed up and go out, Liv." Olivia's dad says while receiving an eye roll from Maya.

"Come over to my place. I live across the hall from Olivia. I'll cook and you can wear whatever. Preferably jeans." Mellie says towards Liv's parents.

Admittedly, Mellie isn't the best cook. Her specialty consists of cereal and frozen dinners, so when Sara offered to cook she was extremely grateful.

"You're amazing." Mellie says while watching Sara move around the kitchen. "I owe you. Whatever you want. It's yours."

"Sex." Sara replies before taking a sip of her beer. "Lots and lots of sex."

"I think I can manage that."

A knock on the door causes Mellie to jump up from the couch. She's changed since earlier. She's now wearing a pair of dark boot-cut jeans and a long sleeve Knicks basketball shirt that she got on her last trip to New York. When Mellie opens the door, Olivia's mother who's holding a bottle of wine greets her. Mellie looks Maya over. She's changed since earlier too. She's now wearing a pair of black dress slacks with a red blouse and matching heels.

"I specifically remember telling you to wear jeans."

"Do I look like I wear a pair of jeans, sweetie?"

"You do not. You look amazing actually." Mellie moves aside to let Maya and the rest of the guest inside. To Mellie's surprise, the rest of them actually follow the dress code. Mellie leads them all into the kitchen where Sara has disappeared from. She grabs the cork screw from a drawer and hands it to Fitz.

"Dinner smells good. Where'd you learn to cook?" Olivia's dad asks while sitting on a stool at the kitchen's island.

"I didn't. My girlfriend cooked." That's the first time that Mellie has actually called Sara her girlfriend. She hasn't called anyone her girlfriend in a very long time. "She's around here somewhere. She probably went to change."

"You have a girlfriend?" Rowan folds his arms and rests them on the kitchen island.

"Yes." Mellie hadn't thought much about how Olivia's parents might react to the news, but before Mellie could say anything else Rowan pulls out a fifty-dollar bill and hands it to his ex-wife.

Olivia rolls her eyes and mouths an "I'm sorry" to Mellie.

"You bet that I was gay?" Mellie asks in somewhat shock but also amusement.

"Yes." Maya responds while putting the money in her pocket.

"But how'd you know?"

"I know everything, sweetie."

"She does." Olivia responds before taking a sip of the wine from the class that Fitz poured her.

"It made dating Liv a living hell in high school." Fitz places the bottle of wine on the counter before moving closer to Liv and placing an arm around her waist. "Rowan didn't help either. I've never bet a man more intimidating than him."

"He doesn't seem that bad to me." Mellie says after taking a sip of Sara's beer that she left on the counter.

"Don't let this man fool you, child. He's a monster." Olivia's mother responds while looking her ex-husband over.

Mellie wondered what the story was between them. She was willing to bet that their divorce story was a lot more interesting than her parent's.

A few minutes later, Sara emerges from Mellie's room wearing a dark purple V-neck and a pair of black skinny jeans.

"I was starting to think that you abandoned me." Mellie says while watching Sara make her way into the kitchen.

"Sorry. I borrowed one of your shirts. I hope that's ok."

"Of course." Mellie puts a hand on the Latina's hip and introduces her to the guest. "Sara, you remember Olivia and Fitz. These are Liv's parents, Maya and Rowan."

"It's very nice to meet you." She says while shaking the couple's hands. "You must be very proud of your daughter. She's made quite a name for herself in D.C."

"We are. Though, I always thought she'd be working in the White House and not just cleaning up their messes." Olivia's dad says while receiving an eye roll from his daughter.

"Rowan, stop. Olivia never wanted to work in the White House. That was always your dream." Says Maya while shifting her attention back to Sara. "So, what do you do for a living sweetie?"

"I'm a doctor. Heart surgeon."

"Really? I thought about going to medical school once. That was before law, of course." Fitz says while accepting a beer from Mellie.

"So you're both lawyers?" Sara moves to check on the food in the oven while continuing to listen to the conversation.

"Kind of." Olivia puts her now empty glass on the counter before continuing. "Fitz works in the courtroom while I try to avoid it all together. I work in crisis management."

"I know. I'm a huge fan of your work actually. You're really impressive."

"Thank you." Olivia responds with a huge smile on her face. To Liv's disappointment, Sara is very likable.

"Well dinner's ready. I hope you guys like your food spicy."

Halfway through dinner Sara gets paged into surgery and has to leave much to Olivia's parents' disappointment. Olivia on the other hand is relieved. Sara and Mellie had been all over each other all night and it was getting to be a bit too much.

After dinner, Fitz volunteered to drive Liv's parents back to their hotel, which left Olivia and Mellie standing in the brunette's kitchen. Olivia leans against the counter and watches Mellie wash the dishes as she sips on her fourth glass of wine.

"She's pretty."

Olivia's words startle Mellie. They had been standing in comfortable silence for the past five minutes.

"What?"

"Sara. She's pretty. Smart. Charming. My parents love her." She takes a sip of her wine before continuing. "She couldn't keep her hands off of you."

Mellie stops washing the dishes and she turns to face Olivia. "You're drunk."

"A little. My tolerance for wine is pretty high." Olivia moves closer to Mellie and puts her glass on the counter.

"I like her."

"I know. She's good for you."

Mellie's eyes go from Olivia's lips before meeting her gaze again. She grabs Olivia's glass and downs the rest of its contents before putting it in the sink. "You should go."

"Why? We haven't done anything."

"We haven't but I know what you're thinking. I know because I'm thinking the same thing and it can't happen. You're getting married."

"That didn't stop you before."

"Things are different now."

"Nothing's different. What could have possibly changed since that night?"

Mellie grabs a towel to dry her hands and lets out a long sigh. "Are you really going to make me say it?"

"Say what?" And Olivia looks confused. Like she actually doesn't know the next words that are going to come out of Mellie's mouth. Mellie blames some of it on the alcohol. A sober Olivia couldn't possibly be this clueless.

"I wasn't in love with you then." As soon as the words leave Mellie's lips she can feel the room change.

Olivia takes a few steps back and her mouth opens and closes a few times before anything comes out of it. "You're not in love with me."

"I am and if we do what we were just thinking about I won't be able to stop. I won't be able to pretend like nothing happened. Not anymore. I love you. I'm in love with you. All I do is think about you and I try to stay away but I can't. You move and I gravitate toward you. I'd do anything you'd ask of me." She takes a deep breath and turns to grip the edge of the sink. "Which is why I need you to tell me to stay away from you."

"Mellie-"

"Tell me that you don't want this. Tell me that you don't feel the same way."

Olivia wants to tell her that she can't stop thinking about her either. She wants to tell her that she might be in love with her too. That sometimes she thinks about waking up next to her or how different her life would be if she had met Mellie first. But she's in love with Fitz. She's marrying him. He's the love of her life. So she tells Mellie what she needs to hear. "I don't love you, Mellie. I'm sorry if I led you on but I'm in love with Fitz. You and I will never happen."

"You should leave."

Olivia can hear Mellie crying and it takes everything for her to not reach out and touch her.

"Please, Liv."

So Olivia leaves and when she makes it back to her apartment she doesn't sleep at all.


	7. Something's Wrong

"So, I'm pretty sure I forgot to put the eggs in the baking mix." Mellie and Sarah are in the Latina's apartment standing in the kitchen. They're both in sweatpants and oversized t-shirts.

Sarah is attempting to teach Mellie how to make a simple red velvet cake for dessert. The brunette had suggested just going to the store and getting something sweet but Sarah thought this would be more fun.

"What? How? I've been watching you the whole time." Sarah says while opening the oven and looking at the lifeless pans of mix. They've been sitting in the oven for about 30 minutes and they haven't started to rise. "Yeah, there definitely aren't any eggs in there." She says while letting out a laugh.

"Don't laugh. I told you I couldn't bake."

"I know but it's pretty funny, Mel." She laughs again before turning the oven off. "We'll run to the store and grab something." She places a kiss on the brunette's cheek before grabbing the women's motorcycle keys and heading towards the door.

"Oh there's no way I'm letting you ride my bike. Not with that dent on the side of your Range Rover."

"That accident wasn't my fault. That guy ran that light."

"Whatever you say. I'm still driving." Mellie takes the keys out of the woman's hand and then pulls a hoodie over her head, which leaves her hair looking messier than before.

"Fine, but I get to pick dessert."

"Deal."

Fitz enters the bedroom of his apartment to find Olivia still lying in bed under the covers. This is what he's returned home to for the past three days. He walks over to Olivia and takes a seat at the edge of the bed.

"Olivia." He nudges her before pulling the covers down to uncover her face. "I brought dinner."

"I'm not hungry." She says before rolling away from him.

"You have to eat something besides popcorn, Liv." When he doesn't get a response, he stands up from the bed and lets out a long sigh. "I'm going to hop in the shower. Please eat something."

Once Olivia can hear the shower running in the bathroom she emerges from under the covers and heads into the kitchen. She's freezing despite the heat being turned up and her wearing cotton pajamas rather than her usual silk nightgown. She grabs a new bottle of wine from the wine rack and opens it. The rack was a gift from Fitz for her 21st birthday. He had given it to her to stock all of the wine she hid under her bed.

Olivia fixes her a glass and takes a drink before rummaging through the bag of takeout to find a carton of shrimp lo mein. She leans against the kitchen counter and for the hundredth time in the pass three days, she thinks about walking across the hall and knocking on the brunette's door.

"I couldn't decide on whether to get brownies or cookies so I got crownies." Mellie says while approaching Sarah who's waiting in a long line with a six-pack of beer and Twizzlers in her hands.

"Genius."

"Thank you." Mellie pulls the woman into a kiss before taking one of the beers out of the pack and opening it.

As soon as she opens it a clerk at the store approaches her. He has braces and a bad case of acne. He doesn't look a day of sixteen. "Ma'am you can't drink that before paying for it."

"I'd be happy to pay for it if you guys could hurry this line along. We've been standing her for 20 minutes."

"It hasn't been that long, Mel."

There's a stare-off going on between Mellie and the clerk before Sarah finally interrupts.

"I'll give you $20 if you ignore her and walk away." She barely gets the money out of her pocket before the kid grabs it and disappers.

"I definitely had that under control."

"I'm sure we would've been standing there all night if it was up to you."

"Maybe, but you'd still have your $20 dollars." Mellie puts an arm around Sarah before bringing the bottle of beer to her lips. "I hope that wasn't all the money you had because I didn't bring any."

Olivia's now sitting on the couch in front of the TV when Fitz finally exits their room. He sits down next to her. He's wearing sweatpants and a long sleeve Harvard shirt. They sit there in silence before Olivia finally speaks up.

"You're going to get sick." She's referring to his still damp hair from the shower.

"So, you do care." He says with a smirk before getting up and grabbing a towel to put over his head. He heads into the kitchen to grab food and chop sticks before sitting back next to Liv. "How was the lo mein?"

"Good." She's picking at an imaginary strand on her sweatpants while she says it. Avoiding eye contact with her fiancé.

"Are you ready to tell me what wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, Fitz." She let's out a sigh while uncrossing her legs from beneath her.

He puts his food down on the table before turning to her. "At first I thought it might have been your parents. I thought that they might have upset you in someway but that's not it. Your parents don't get to you. Not like this. This is something different. This is something I've never seen before. This is…" He takes a deep sigh before continuing. "This is your heartbreaking."

Fitz's words cause Olivia to finally look him in the eyes.

"Did I do something wrong?"

"No." She hates making him feel like this. She feels guilty. "I'm sorry. It's just the wedding stuff. It's just happening so fast."

"Do you want to move the date?"

"No."

"We can elope. We can go to the courthouse right now if you want. Tell me what you want and I'll make it happen."

Fitz would do anything that Olivia asked of him and that's exactly why she has to marry him. "I love you. Everything's ok. I'm ok. Don't worry."

"Are you sure?"

 _No._ "Yes. I'm sure. Finish eating." She leans over and gives him a quick kiss before getting up from the couch. "I'm going to lay down. I have an early morning at work. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Liv."

Olivia arrives to work at eight in the morning. Her gladiators don't arrive until an hour later. Abby walks into Liv's office and stands in front of the woman's desk.

"What happened to you yesterday? I called you like ten times, Liv."

"I was busy." Olivia doesn't even look up from her computer scene to address the redhead.

"Something's wrong."

"Nothing's wrong, Abby."

"I've known you for twenty years, Liv. I know when something's wrong. So, what is it?"

Olivia lets out a deep sigh before looking over to Abby and speaking again. "Close the door."

Abby does as she's told and makes her way back over to take a seat across from Olivia at the desk.

"I'm about to say something and you can't react to it."

"I can't react at all?"

"You can react but don't over react, ok?"

"Ok."

There's a long pause and Olivia fiddles with the pin in her hand before speaking. "I think I might be in love with Fitz's neighbor."

Abby actually manages to not over react. She tells Liv that she should take some time to think about it and not do anything drastic.

That led her to where she is now. It's a little past 10 o'clock and she's walking into a bar. She takes a seat at the bar and shrugs her jacket off. "I think this is the same seat I sat in last time."

Olivia can see the brunette tense up at the sound of her voice before she turns around to face her.

"What are you doing here, Liv?"

"We need to talk, Mellie."


	8. Temporary

"What are you doing here, Liv?" Mellie asks while avoiding eye contact with the other woman. She moves around the bar to keep herself busy.

"I needed to see you. We need to talk."

"There's nothing to talk about, Olivia. I said everything I had to say and you were supposed to stay away from me, remember?"

A couple of the people sitting at the bar are staring at them now. This is exactly what she didn't want. A scene.

"I know, and I will. I just need to talk to you first. Can we go outside?"

Mellie finally stops moving around the bar and looks at Olivia. "It's pretty late. You should head home. I'm sure Fitz is wondering where you are." Without another word, Mellie goes back to moving around the bar and fixing drinks.

Olivia sits at the bar a few more minutes before finally giving up and leaving.

Mellie spends the rest of the night thinking about Olivia. Even when she gets to her apartment and lays down next to Sara, she's still thinking about Olivia. She hates herself.

It's three in the morning and they're both awake. Sara spent eight hours in surgery. Mellie can tell that she's exhausted.

She has the TV on low and she's talking about her day. Something about a rude lady. Or was that just the TV? Mellie's completely spaced out. Her head is flooded with everything that's happened since her neighbor walked into that bar for the first time.

"Mellie." Sara says from beside her and it brings her back to reality. "You're not listening to me."

"I'm sorry." Mellie says while shifting to face the Latina. "What were you talking about?"

Sara lets out a sigh before responding. "I thought you'd be over her by now."

Mellie opens her mouth to speak but nothing comes out.

"It's my fault. I knew what I was getting myself into when we started this. You were damaged. I like damaged things. It's why I became a doctor. I just thought you'd be over her by now."

"I'm sorry." Mellie responds before lying on her back. She's looking up at the ceiling now. "I thought I'd be over her by now too."

"Does she know? That you're in love with her I mean. Does she know?"

"She knows."

"Then she's an idiot. I'd give anything to have someone look the way you look when you think about her. To get lost in the thought of me."

There's a comfortable silence before Sara moves out of the bed. "I'm going to head back to my place."

"No. It's 3 in the morning. It's freezing outside. Stay the night. Please."

She looks Mellie over. And Mellie gets it. She hates that she's put Sara in this situation. It would be a lot easier if she could just get over Olivia. If she could feel the way she feels for Olivia for Sara.

"Ok." She gets back in bed and it only takes a few minutes for Sara to fall asleep. It takes Mellie hours.

Mellie books a flight to Georgia as soon as Sara leaves in the morning. She thinks seeing her mom and sister will do her some good. She has to get away from this place. Has to get away from Olivia.

There's a knock on the door and Mellie opens it to see Olivia on the other side.

"Hi."

"Hi." Mellie moves away from the door to let Olivia in. "You're persistent."

"I'm surprised you opened the door."

"Might as well. My flight leaves tonight." Mellie moves to the refrigerator and takes a beer out.

"Flight? Where are you going?"

"Georgia. Visiting my mom."

"You're not coming to the wedding?" It's a dumb question. Olivia knows that. She also knows that if Mellie leaves then she's not coming back and Olivia can't let that happen.

Mellie lets out a low chuckle before taking a sip of her beer. "Sara and I broke up last night."

"Why?"

"She got tired of coming in second place. I could kick myself honestly. I was doing the same thing to her that you're doing to me."

"It's not the same."

"It is. And I'm not mad at you, Olivia. For choosing him. I just wish I'd met you first."

There's a long silence between them. Both of them just standing there looking at each other. Olivia looks nervous. Like she's working up the nerve to say something. Her mouth opens and closes a couple of times before something finally comes out.

"Do you ever wish that you could go back to that night we first met in the bar and undo everything?"

There's another pause. This one is much shorter. Mellie places her beer on the counter before answering. "No."

"Neither do I." Olivia moves over until she's standing right in front of the brunette. "Last night I knew exactly what I wanted to say to you."

"And now?" Mellie asks while looking down at Olivia. Her eyes fall down to Olivia's lips and then back to her eyes.

"I don't know."

"I meant what I said the last time you were here. I do love you."

"I know." There's a brief pause before Olivia speaks again. "I love you too. And the only reason I didn't say it when you did is because I was scared. I'm still scared and I don't scare easily."

"You love me?" It's almost a whisper. Like she's asking herself. So low that if Olivia wasn't standing right in front of her she would have missed it.

"I do."

"And you're in love with Fitz."

"You're leaving."

"I'd stay if you asked me to. If that's want you really want. I'd go to the wedding even though I know it'll kill me. I'd do anything for you and I think you know that." Mellie lets out a sigh before continuing. "I also know that you're not selfish enough to make me stay. Not when-"

Mellie doesn't get to finish her sentence before Olivia's lips are on hers. It's a lot like their kiss in the bar. Sloppy and heated. The only difference now is that they're in love and it's more desperate because this is it. Mellie knows that Olivia is going to walk down that aisle and Olivia knows that Mellie's going to get on that plane. So this is it.

Mellie picks Olivia up and carries her into her bedroom. Her lips hurt from Olivia biting down so hard on them but she doesn't care.

Once they're in the room, it's a race to see who can get undressed the fastest without taking a break from kissing and Mellie tries not to think about how temporary this is.

Temporary.

And all of a sudden Olivia stops kissing her. She looks the brunette over before speaking. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"You're crying."

Mellie reaches to touch her face. She was crying. "I'm sorry." She let's out a deep sigh before wiping the tears from her face. "I'm a mess."

"I'm getting married this weekend and I'm lying in bed with you. I'm pretty sure that makes me the mess."

Mellie grabs Olivia and wraps her arms around her. They lay there tangled in each other until Mellie has to leave to catch her flight.

"You're going to make a beautiful bride, Olivia." That's the last thing Mellie says to her before kissing her on the cheek and leaving.


	9. Helen of Troy

Olivia's sitting in bed next to Fitz, who's fast asleep, when her phone rings. It only rings twice before she picks up.

"Hey." Olivia says in a low whisper.

 _Hey. My flight just landed._

"Oh." There's a hint of disappointment in her voice.

 _Oh?_

"I was kind of hoping you didn't get on the plane. I know that sounds selfish."

 _It's ok to be selfish sometimes, Liv._

There's a pregnant pause before Mellie speaks up again.

 _What are you up to?_

"Nothing. In bed, watching some crappy reality show." Olivia wants to say she misses her but she doesn't.

 _You're in bed? What are you wearing?_

"That's definitely not happening."

Mellie lets out a genuine laugh on the other end. The kind that would make you turn around to see what's so funny.

 _Well, I don't have much to say. Just wanted to let you know that I made it._

"You could have just texted me."

 _I know. I just wanted to hear your voice….I miss you already, which is crazy._

"You're the one who left."

 _I know. I just…this is what's best for us, right?_

Olivia looks over at Fitz. The man she's been in love with since high school. The man she's going to marry in three days. "Right. Goodnight, Mellie." And before the other woman can even respond, Olivia ends the call.

Mellie wakes to the sound of music playing. For a second she can't remember where she is, but then she looks around the room. It's the same as she left it. Her mom hadn't touched a thing. Her Pulp Fiction poster is still hung on the wall and even the pictures of her old girlfriend are still all over the room.

When Mellie makes it downstairs, she's surprised to see her dad sitting at the kitchen table drinking a cup of coffee.

"What are you doing here?"

"Your mom called. Said you flew in. It's not everyday that my eldest daughter steps foot in Georgia. Thought I'd stop by and see you."

Mellie makes her way over to pour herself a mug of coffee before speaking again. "Where's mom?"

"She went to the store. Had to grab some food for breakfast. She'll be back soon."

"You should leave. I came home to see mom. Not you."

"Listen, Mellie. I know I haven't been the best dad but I drove all the way out here to see you. The least you can do is have a cup of coffee with me."

There's a moment of hesitation before Mellie sits down across from her dad.

"So how are things with you in D.C.?"

"Great." She takes a sip of her coffee before continuing. "My gorgeous girlfriend broke up with me two nights ago because I'm in love with another woman. A woman who's about to get married to a guy that I actually consider to be a friend."

"Jesus. So you're still…"

"A lesbian? Yes. Unfortunately they haven't found a cure for it yet."

"That's not what I meant, Mellie. You…you always did make this hard on me."

"Well you didn't make it easy on me either."

"I tried."

Mellie let's out a scoff. "No you didn't. You hated me and you made sure that I knew it. You might not have come out and said it but you did. You left me. You left mom and married someone else and then you left her too. That's what you're good at dad. Leaving. But you were always terrible at staying away." She takes a deep breath to calm herself down. "You should leave. I'll tell mom that you stopped by and that we got along just fine."

There's a long pause. They're both still. Neither one of them say a word. They sit there and look at each other and each expression is colder than the other.

Mellie's dad finally rises from the table and pushes his chair in. "I never hated you, Mellie and I'm sorry if I made you feel that way."

"It was nice seeing you dad." Mellie says while looking down at the coffee mug in her hand. She doesn't even bother to look him in the eye before he leaves.

"So, your mother called me yesterday. She says you've been avoiding her calls." Fitz says while sitting on the living room couch with Olivia.

They're making sure everything is ready for the rehearsal dinner tomorrow.

"What'd she want?" Olivia asks without looking up from the seating chart in her hand.

"She wants to know if she can bring a date to the wedding."

Olivia looks over at Fitz with a looks of amusement on her face. Her hair is pinned up and she has an old pair of glasses on. "Really?"

"Yeah." He says with a soft chuckle.

"You told her no, right?"

"I said yes actually."

"Fitz." She let's out a sigh before continuing. "If my mom brings a date then my dad is going to want to bring a date as well."

"Well it's not like we don't have room at the table. Mellie isn't coming with Sara anymore so that opens two seats."

Olivia had told Fitz about Mellie leaving this morning and to her surprise Fitz didn't ask too many questions about it.

"My mother and father are going to fight through the whole wedding. I swear everything would've been just fine if Mellie and Sara were still coming."

"I don't know about that." Fitz says while shifting awkwardly on the couch.

"I thought you liked them."

"I did."

"But?"

"I don't know. I just always go this vibe that Mellie was in love with you or something."

Olivia eyes widen in shock. "That's-"

"Don't say it's ridiculous. You're very easy to fall in love with. I saw the way she looked at you. You'd have to be blind not to notice and nothing gets passed you, Olivia."

"Where's your dad?" Mellie's mom asks while putting up the groceries in the kitchen.

"He had to leave." Mellie's still sitting at the kitchen table sipping on her second cup of coffee.

"What'd you do?"

"Nothing. We talked for a little bit and then he left. Nothing happened."

"Are you going to tell me why you're here?"

Mellie gets up from the kitchen table to help her mom with breakfast. "I can't just fly to Georgia to visit you?"

"It's been two years, Mellie. Something must be wrong. Is this about that married woman you've been seeing?"

"God, Harmony can't hold water." Mellie says while rolling her eyes. "And she isn't married. She's engaged."

"It must have been bad for you to fly back home. Harmony said that she was pretty. Called her Helen of Troy."

Mellie rolls her eyes again.

"Was she over exaggerating?" Mellie's mom cracks a couple of eggs and puts them in a bowl.

"No. She's beautiful." Mellie says with a hint of sadness in her voice that her mom immediately picks up on.

"You must really love her."

"I do."

"Then why are you here?"

"She's getting married mom."

"If you're really in love with her then you should be fighting for her. Nothing worth having comes easy sweetie."

Olivia and Fitz hadn't talked much since yesterday. Olivia had denied noticing Mellie's feelings toward her, which didn't please Fitz. They're at the rehearsal dinner and both Olivia's parents had brought dates.

Olivia excuses herself from the dinner and walks outside to clear her head and even though she has on a thick coat she's still freezing.

"You'll catch a cold standing out here."

Olivia looks over to where the statement came from and she's surprised to see Mellie. When Mellie is finally standing in front of her she has to stop herself from reaching out to touch the brunette.

"Are you really here?"

Mellie lets out a low chuckle. "Have you really had that much to drink that you'd be hallucinating me?"

"It's been a rough night."

There's a comfortable silence before Olivia speaks again. "What are you doing here? You're supposed to be in Georgia."

"I came back."

"Why?"

"For you."

"I'm getting married tomorrow."

"You don't have to. We can leave right now. We can go anywhere you want."

"This is my rehearsal dinner, Mellie. I have guests inside."

"Fuck them."

Olivia smirks at Mellie's statement.

"And I mean that with the upmost respect because I do love your parents."

Olivia rolls her eyes at before taking a step closer to the brunette.

"Runaway with me."

"I can't."

"You can. Come with me. Just for the night. If you change your mind tomorrow then I'll drive you to the church myself."

Mellie extends her hand and Olivia thinks for what seems forever before taking Mellie's hand and getting on the back of her motorcycle.


End file.
